Downgrade to iOS 5 – iTunes

Before you get things rolling, you need to make sure that you're not currently running the latest version of iTunes (iTunes 10.7). If you are, ensure that your music is backed up, uninstall iTunes, grab the relevant installer below and install iTunes 10.6.3

Advertisement

Downgrade to iOS 5 – backup

Unless you want to lose everything, the next step involves backing up your iDevice either to iCloud or iTunes itself. To back up to iCloud hit up 'Settings', 'iCloud', 'Storage and Backup' and select 'Back Up Now'.

To backup directly to iTunes simply right-click your device on the left hand side and select 'Back Up'.

Downgrade to iOS 5 – install iOS 5

And here's where the fun begins. Go to your device page in iTunes, and click 'Restore' while pressing the 'option' key (Mac) or 'ctrl' key (Windows). This should allow you to select the iOS 5.1.1 file you downloaded earlier.

Select the file, and let iTunes do its thing. Exciting, isn't it?

Downgrade to iOS 5 – restore your backup

Once your iDevice is back to running iOS 5 you can restore your data from either your previous iCloud or iTunes backup.

If nothing has melted and there's no sign of smoke then congratulate yourself for turning back the clock. Needless to say, Stuff holds no responsibility for anything that might go wrong at any stage in this process, so carry out this procedure at your own risk.